Students strike off Churchill to rename house after Rashford
A PRIMARY school has dropped its houses named after Churchill and JK Rowling in favour of Marcus Rashford and Mary Seacole to boost diversity.
Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School in Richmond, west London, previously had two of its houses named after the former prime minister and the Harry Potter author.
Rashford, who plays for Manchester United, was honoured by the Queen for his campaigning during the pandemic for free meals to be provided for children during the school holidays. Seacole set up the “British Hotel” behind the lines during the Crimean War in the 1850s where she treated wounded soldiers.
Rowling has been accused of “transphobia” after questioning why an online article referred to “people who menstruate” rather than just using the term “women”.
She denies being a transphobe and has called for an end to the “climate of fear” around the trans debate.
Churchill has recently been accused of racism over his alleged inaction in the 1943 Bengal Famine and his views on Indian independence. The school, which was rated as outstanding at its most recent Ofsted inspection, said the new house names were chosen following a discussion with pupils.
Alison Bateman, the school’s head teacher, said the house names were changed after parents challenged the school about the “lack of diversity” in the names. She added that pupils also felt the house names did not reflect the “diverse” community.
Following a discussion in the classroom, pupils voted for the names they wanted to change and also voted for the new names they wanted to use instead.
“The changing of our school’s house names was an activity that our children began discussing last year,” Ms Bateman said. “It is important to us that we reflect what is important to our pupils and their families, not just through their learning, but in the environment they learn in. It is important that children’s voices are heard and this is why we supported their choice.
“We have a lot of support from parents, some of whom have themselves challenged us in the past about the lack of diversity in the names. We also have the full support of our governors and the Diocese of Southwark.”
It is not the first school to change the names of its houses. Earlier this year, Seaford Head School in East Sussex said it would also drop the names of Churchill and Rowling from its houses after their views were branded “intolerant” by teenage students.
Pupils stated that Churchill was responsible for “torture”, while Rowling was not suitable due to her “words about the trans community”.
University College London has also renamed buildings that honour eugenicists as a step towards addressing its historical links with the movement. Lecture theatres and a building named after Francis Galton and Karl Pearson have been given new names, the university announced.